Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a technique for managing a setting value in an environment in which an image forming apparatus is operated in compliance with a security rule.
Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, there are image forming apparatuses in which a security rule can be set. The security rule is a setting in which a guideline not to damage the security of operations is established as a rule. In such image forming apparatuses, check processing of the security rule is operated in the image forming apparatus so that a setting not complying with the security rule cannot be accepted.
In addition, many image forming apparatuses have a user authentication function. Each authenticated user can individually record a customized setting as an individual setting. Further, the image forming apparatuses generally have a function of importing and exporting a setting value so as to efficiently manage setting values of a plurality of image forming apparatuses.
If a setting value is imported into the conventional image forming apparatus without considering a security rule in an environment in which the security rule is set, the image forming apparatus could be in danger of being used by the setting not complying with the security rule. Therefore, when a setting value is imported, it is required to check whether the setting value complies with the security rule.
Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-247033 discusses a technique which changes a security state of a managing target system to comply with the security rule so as to prevent a setting not complying with the security rule from being accepted.
However, the technique discussed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-247033 does not consider a setting individually customized by each user as an individual setting. Therefore, when the individual setting violating the security rule is imported, the import fails. For example, in the case that an administrator distributes a file including a plurality of setting value groups to a plurality of image forming apparatuses in a batch to perform import processing, a setting value included in the file, such as authentication information of a general user other than the administrator, sometimes does not comply with the security rule, and in such a case, the import fails. In this case, the general user cannot log in the image forming apparatus using a user account of his/her own. Thus, an administrative user needs to ask all general users to generate again the import data complying with the security rule and retry the import, which takes an immense amount of time and effort.